To say that Sandra Lee, MD, the Dr. Pimple Popper, has seen some craziness this year would be an understatement. Yes, she's cut into a monster butt growth and squeezed pus out of more ear blackheads than we care to count — but her favourite surgery of 2018 will shock even the most hardcore popaholics.
When we caught up with the dermatologist, SLMD founder, and social-media phenomenon to break down her year in pimple-popping milestones — which include her viral YouTube clips, the TLC series, plus her most recent 12 Pops of Christmas spin-off special (a real holiday classic) — she told us that the procedure that sticks out in her mind is on the smaller scale, and of the soft and squishy variety. At first glance, the condition doesn't look too wild, more like an array of puffy blisters on the neck, but it's what spills out from beneath the minefield of bumps that makes the surgery impossible to forget.
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"The most memorable surgery I've performed this year is my series with Caribbean Momma’s Steatocystomas," Dr. Lee says. Steatocystoma Multiplex, she explains, is a condition where multiple slow-growing cysts appear, usually during puberty. They can occur on any part of the body, but are found most commonly on the chest, armpits, and neck, with odourless liquid contents that are often clear or slightly yellow in colour. "Though steatocystomas are considered a softer pop — compared to some of the larger, more dramatic lipomas and cysts you’ve seen me remove — they are definitely super satisfying," she says.
Obviously, the visual satisfaction comes from the buttery stream of pus that squirts out from each bump, but Dr. Lee says that she's been most moved by unforgettable personalities underneath the steatocystomas. "Most people who have steatocystomas have many bumps all over their body, and come to see me for several extraction sessions," she explains. "Because of this, I get to know them even more than the average patient, and since the procedure is quick and easy, there’s always a lot of fun banter and conversation."
"Funnily enough, I have noticed that most of my patients with Steatocystoma Multiplex, usually have very bubbly and fun personalities," Dr. Lee says. "I've treated Momma Squishy, Skittles, and many others, but Caribbean Momma is my most recent steatocystomas patient. She's super fun, sassy, and has an amazing positive attitude — which you’ll hear watching the video series."
If you were able to sit through Dr. Lee's favourite 17-minute steatocystomas extraction without too much squirming, you have the distinction of being a very strong-stomached popaholic. For you, Dr. Lee has punny gag merch that you need to shop — if your guilty-pleasure habit has become something of a religion.